Solid recovery puts delos Santos in Taiheiyo Masters hunt

MANILA, Philippines — Justin delos Santos shook off an early double bogey with a solid three-under-par 67, positioning himself just three strokes behind leader Sejung Hiramoto after the first round of the Taiheiyo Masters 2024 in Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan on Thursday.

Delos Santos, who finished tied for 12th in the recent Japan Open, initially struggled after birdying the par-5 third hole, dropping two strokes on the par-3 fourth hole. However, he quickly rebounded, hitting back-to-back birdies around the turn.

The Filipino-American kept his momentum, adding birdies on Nos. 15 and 18, carding rounds of 35 and 32 for a steady 67 and a share of ninth place with eight others.

Hiramoto set the pace after a stunning bogey-free 64, clinching his advantage with birdies on the 10th, 11th, 14th, 17th and 18th holes. That netted him a one stroke lead over Mikumu Horikawa and Ryosuke Kinoshita, who both posted 65s.

Ryo Ishikawa is also in contention, with his 66 leading a group of four just off the top.

Meanwhile, Juvic Pagunsan had a challenging day, finishing with a six-over 76 after a triple bogey on the fourth hole and a series of missteps, leaving him tied for 84th in a field of 87.

But Delos Santos is poised for a strong week, aiming for a Top 10 finish in the fourth-to-last leg of the Japan Golf Tour. He hopes to improve on his previous best finish at the Taiheiyo Masters, where he tied for sixth last year.

His career-high remains a third-place finish at the "For The Players By The Players" tournament in 2022.